Suspected Santa Rosa car thief nabbed after hit-and-run crash

February 21, 2014, 1:12PM

02/21/2014

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A hit-and-run crash on Highway 101 early Friday expanded into a stolen car case, which ended with a suspect arrested at gunpoint, said the CHP.

The crash occurred at about 6:35 a.m., south of Todd Road in southern Santa Rosa.

The driver who caused the crash was in a Buick sedan. He didn't stay at the scene and the minor-injury crash became a hit-and-run report, said CHP Officer Jon Sloat.

While officers were investigating the hit-and-run they heard a police radio report of a stolen Buick sedan that had disappeared in Santa Rosa minutes prior to the crash. The two cases began to merge, said Sloat.

As officers spoke to the crash victim, they spotted a Buick sedan pass by on Redwood Drive.

The victim driver identified the passing vehicle and officers went after the Buick.

The driver stopped outside of a Les Schwab Tire shop and officers took him into custody at gunpoint, said Sloat.

Ruben Alvarez Villafan, 36, of Napa was arrested on suspicion of car theft, hit-and-run, driving with a suspended license and possessing burglary tools.